• Normandy Massacres

Date of birth:

August 19th, 1911

Date of death:

May 31st, 1990

Nationality:

German

Milius began his career in the SS in the early 1930s and steadily rose through the ranks. He was promoted to SS-Unterscharführer on 24 December 1934, followed by SS-Oberscharführer on 26 February 1935, and SS-Hauptscharführer on 1 July 1935. His officer commissions began with SS-Untersturmführer on 30 January 1937, then SS-Obersturmführer on 1 June 1938. As the war intensified, he was promoted to SS-Hauptsturmführer on 20 April 1940, SS-Sturmbannführer on 30 January 1942, and finally SS-Obersturmbannführer on 9 November 1943.

Early in his military career, Milius served as a platoon leader in the 4th Platoon of the 4th Company of SS-Bataillon Nürnberg. During the campaign in France, he was severely wounded while serving as a company commander. After recovering from his injuries, he was appointed commander of the SS-Unterführerschule in Lauenburg, where he served from July 1942 until 3 November 1943. This role placed him in charge of training junior SS officers, a critical function as the war demanded increasingly rapid deployment of personnel.

In November 1943, Milius took command of the III Battalion of SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 25, part of the 12th SS Panzer Division “Hitlerjugend.” He held this position until 14 June 1944. On that day, the division’s commander, SS-Brigadeführer Fritz Witt, was killed by naval gunfire at his headquarters. Command of the division passed to SS-Standartenführer Kurt Meyer, and Milius was elevated to command the entire SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 25. His tenure in this role was brief, as he was soon replaced by Hauptmann Fritz Steger later in 1944.

Milius's men were the first to commit atrocities against captured Canadian soldiers at Authie and Buron on June 7, 1944. His troops committed further atrocities later that month, on June 10-12, 17, and 20-21.

In September 1944, Milius led a temporary combat formation known as Kampfgruppe Milius, which operated from 3 to 4 September. This ad hoc unit was formed in response to the chaotic conditions on the Western Front following the Allied breakout from Normandy.

Milius was captured by Allied forces and indicted for war crimes, but never prosecuted and ultimately released.

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• - LUTHER, C.W.H., Blood and honor, Schiffer Publishing Ltd, 2012.
  

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